Lunch buckets or boxes are widely employed to carry various foods for on-job eating. Generally, the lunch box is a relatively small enclosure which is of sufficient volume to carry food for one meal, including sandwiches, liquids and the like. Various insulated members and receptacles have been suggested to permit the carrying of hot and/or cold foods. It has also been suggested that the enclosure be provided with a heating means suitable for heating all or a portion of the food and thereby eliminating the necessity of consuming cold food. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,545,127 discloses a heater located in the base portion thereof. U.S. Pat. No. 2,598,995 discloses an insulated lunch box which is generally formed as a double-walled element to provide an insulated carrier. Food is supported within the carrier on a tray structure which is releasably located within the carrier. They also suggest insertion of a heat retaining member under one or more of the food plates to keep the food warm for periods of time. Some prior art, such as U.S. Pat. No. 2,572,826, has suggested liquid fuel burning devices within a separate bottom chamber.
These and similar lunch boxes have been suggested. However, they have not, generally, provided practical implementation and, to the inventor's knowledge, are not available commercially.
Although the user may often desire to heat some food, there are various times when only cold food is desired and the heating unit and associated compartmented portion is not necessary. Further, existing lunch boxes do not provide convenient transport of various food products including canned beverages and the like.
The present invention is particularly directed to an improved novel lunch box having a multiple compartmented housing and a separable integrated on-site heating unit for heating of food product.